6,000 Miles (Station 19)

This Side of the Moon

Adelina's POV:

Sitting in the car, chatting with Carina, I felt at peace for the first time since I heard about Andrea. I couldn't stop looking out the window as Carina drove us back from the airport. She pointed out the Space Needle and Mount Rainier and I was enthralled, soaking up every ounce of the view. As we got closer to her apartment, my smile started to fade and I could feel my heart beating faster.

"You okay bambina?" Carina asked as she looked over at me.

"Yeah," I said, putting a smile back on my face. "I'm fine."

She just gave me a look, showing that she didn't believe a word I said. Ugh, I hated how well she knew me sometimes.

"What is it?" she asked.

I shrugged. "I think I'm just nervous." I paused and she looked over at me again, waiting for me to explain.

"I've heard so much about Maya, and I just really want her to like me." I said with a slight chuckle, realizing how dumb it sounded as I heard it come out of my mouth.

Carina shook her head, "Addie, she's going to love you. I swear on it."

She parked the car, pulled my bags out of the trunk, and led me up to the apartment. As we approached the door she took my free hand in hers and gave it a squeeze. I smiled up at her and nodded before she dropped my hand and unlocked the door.

Carina's POV:

"Maya," I called out as I led Adelina into our apartment. "We're back!" As I closed the door behind me, I could smell something vaguely sweet.

"In here!" Maya called from the kitchen as she poked her head out from around the corner. "One second."

I glanced down at Addie with a laugh. "Entra, entra" I said as I ushered her in, taking her other bag from her. I placed them down next to the couch before leading her into the kitchen.

I kissed Maya hello and then introduced her to my baby sister. "Maya, this is Adelina. Addie, this is Maya."

I watched as my girlfriend's face lit up and she pulled my sister into a hug. "It's so nice to finally meet you!" she exclaimed.

Addie chuckled nervously but smiled back. "It's nice to meet you too," she said before glancing back over at me.

I nodded, showing she had been nervous for nothing.

"Oh!" Maya called out. "I made cookies!" She quickly turned away from us and ran over to the counter.

I snorted a laugh. "You did what now?"

"I made cookies" she repeated, coming over with a plate.

I looked down and smiled painfully at the misshapen, slightly burnt, chocolate chip cookies she so proudly presented to us.

"What?" Maya asked defensively as she saw my face. "I can bake."

I pulled her into a hug and subdued my laughter. "Of course you can bella, thank you. This was very kind."

I wrapped my arms around her waist, holding her in front of me, and subtly shook my head at Adelina as she picked up a cookie off the plate. She politely took a bite and thanked Maya, before putting it down on a napkin next to her.

"Come on, bambina." I said to Adelina as I kissed Maya's cheek and stepped away from her. "I'll show you to your room."

Adelina's POV:

I was so relieved when Carina led me out of the kitchen. Maya was super sweet, but her cookies... not so much. She showed me to their guest room and plopped down on the bed with my suitcase to help me unpack.

"So... what did you think?" she whispered in Italian.

"She's just as lovely as you said." I laughed, not sure why we were whispering about Maya since she couldn't understand us anyway.

We continued to chat as we put my clothes away, our speech getting louder and faster as the minutes wore on. Eventually Maya knocked on the doorframe, pausing there and watching, trying to gauge the feel of the room since she didn't know what we were saying.

Carina held out her hand for her to join us on the bed as I quickly switched back to English, "I was just catching Carina up on all of the town drama she's missed."

Maya sat down and laughed. "Well don't stop on my account."

I finished telling my sister about old Mrs. Palazzo, the woman who had lived across the street from us since our parents first moved in, years before Carina was even born. In her old age, she's been getting forgetful and last week she walked out in her pajamas and made it all the way to the café around the corner before someone stopped her. Then Lorenzo, the café owner's 12 year old son, took her arm and escorted her back home.

Just as we finished putting all my clothes away, the doorbell rang. I looked at Carina for answers, but she looked just as confused as she turned to Maya.

"I ordered dinner," she announced happily. Carina and I shared a quick glance.

"Don't worry," she teased. "Maya is much better at ordering than she is cooking."

"Hey!" Maya hit Carina's arm as she laughed. "I mean you're not wrong, but still."

We all laughed as we moved into the living room and Maya answered the door. We sat around, ate Chinese food, and chatted until 11 or so. As Maya took our plates into the kitchen, Carina came over and sat on the arm of my chair.

"Alright, bambina. Go get some rest, si? We have a lot of preparations to do for the memorial tomorrow." She said, placing a kiss on the top of my head. Both of our faces fell as we remembered why I was really here.

"Yeah, okay." I gave her a big hug, said goodnight to Maya and thanked them both for having me. I went to my room and got ready for bed, knowing full well that no amount of sleep could ever prepare me for tomorrow.